New Year’s Resolutions For Reading Football Club

Decisions. Objectives. As if it were a wish list. Whatever you want to name them, having goals for yourself can be a very beneficial thing.

I wrote a piece last year about our club’s resolutions around this time, almost to the exact moment. I’m not sure what I put in there, but it’s obvious that it didn’t work and/or that nobody from the club read it because in the months that followed, we scored eight (eight!) points, which sent us down to League One.

Saying that 2023 was a chaotic year would be akin to claiming that Joey Barton holds some slightly opposing views. It was terrible—a veritable annus horribilis, if you will.

I’ve read and heard others claim that 2024 can’t get any worse. It is able to. I won’t delve into the most dire situations just now, but let’s just say it ain’t pretty. Now, let’s concentrate on the major possibilities, the semi-controllables, and the things that could bring us the greatest happiness over the course of the upcoming year.

squad

Simply put, hold it together. Of course, there are players (like Nesta Guinness-Walker, Harlee Dean, Sam Hutchinson, and others) who are so lost in the cold that it would be best for everyone if they moved on. Basically, think along the lines of Ovie Ejaria.

For the sake of depth, we must retain certain fringe players who are either underutilized or misused. To name a few, there is Ben Elliott, Big E, and Charlie Savage. It’s up to Ruben Selles to figure out how to more skillfully integrate these players into our lineup and try to use them more frequently. Although they haven’t been handled properly, we are aware of their potential.

It is evident that the team has a developing core. However, we must be more adaptable in how we use these players during shortened game periods and rotate more wisely. We need all hands on deck if we want to climb out of the League One basement and remain in this league, so I don’t want to see these players leave in January (I never thought I’d be writing that sentence a year ago…).

Creation

We’ll never use a 3-5-2 set-up regularly, but I’d love to see it happen while Selles is in charge. Imagine the damage a well-supported Sam Smith could do, and the possibilities we could have with a five-man midfield. We can compete in this league, I’m pretty sure of it; the issue is that we don’t.

The biggest issue I have is that we still haven’t realized our full potential. In terms of proactive play, 3-5-2 would truly put the fox among the partridges; far too often, we’ve gotten off to a passive start in games and left ourselves with a mountain to climb.

Though, to be fair, we have been far more resilient in the last round of games (against Peterborough United and Cheltenham Town, for instance), consider the games in which we came up short or drew. We would convert those into three-point gains if we could gain an advantage.

kick toward the goal

Everybody is aware of my seat. You have obviously not read my award-winning column if you don’t. I adore Dolan and always will. I enjoy taking up my 23-year-old seat there. Let’s face it, though: we’re not the loudest. There have been expulsions for sneezing during sporting events.

Thus, I would rather that we kick toward the South Stand in the second half rather than the other way around if we have the option. I appreciate Club 1871’s efforts and the customary noise of the southeast corner where the scoreboard is located, so why not take advantage of that, particularly if we are trying to win the game? When necessary, those supporters were able to suck the ball into the net—not literally, though. So let’s give it a shot, shall we, captain’s group?

Be patient.

From the top to the bottom, everyone knows the team needs a makeover (assuming there is such a thing in a football club). The product offered across all departments has suffered greatly as a result of the recent decline in staff numbers, which has happened almost as fast as the decline in attendance.

We can only speculate as fans and sympathize with how difficult things have been for the RG2 staff. It should not be necessary for anyone to bear the cross of constantly worrying about not getting paid for laborious work. Recall that a large number of these employees are in fact club supporters. It hurts in every way.

To be honest, this piece is turning into a really wishful thinking piece about wanting everyone and everything sorted out right away. You could argue—and you would be correct—that the fan base has shown an incredible amount of patience recently, but even with the takeover we all long for, a magic wand won’t materialize overnight. Before things get better, they might get worse.

It will take time for whoever assumes ownership to assess each department, identify its advantages and disadvantages, and create a plan to enhance every facet of the club.

I’ve had to do this on a much different scale multiple times in my career, and it’s not a simple task. It’s clear that fans want change, but it will take some time to get the tanker to steer clear of the nearby rocks.

Enjoyable

Don’t we all just want to have fun again? Knowing that we will compete and have a shot at winning is what we want to bring to games. We want to watch talented athletes perform. We hope to attend a game and feel like we’ve made the most of our time.

I’m holding both of my arms out to give you a big hug when that day comes. One day, it will be fun again.

Cheers to a respectable 2024 and over eight points before the season ends.

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